4/16/2015

You've heard the opening to Star Wars a million times, but here are some things you probably didn't know about the opening theme song. There have been a bunch of changes to the Star Wars movies going all the way back to the 1970s, but this change is making fans as mad as if Han shot first. What is it, and does it make a difference?

The opening to the Star Wars films used to have an iconic booming quality. First, there is silence and then there's the triumphant fanfare of the 20th Century Fox titles followed by more silence and the thundering John Williams score. But, that's all changed.

First, here's the classic opening for all six movies

Since Disney bought Star Wars, there's no reason to keep promoting a rival studio like Fox. So, they took it out and replaced it with an updated Lucasfilm title. The music isn't as grand and the sound isn't as thundering. Then there's the familiar silence and the John Williams score.

Here's what you'll hear in the digital version and, presumably, when Star Wars: The Force Awakens opens.

This sounds like a minor change, but it's a pretty big deal. Here are some other things you might not know about the Star Wars opening song.

1. The film scripts refer to this opening theme as "war drums."

2. The original 20th Century Fox Fanfare was composed in 1933 Alfred Newman, the longtime head of Fox's music department. It was replaced by an extended version in 1954. So, by the time the Star Wars films came out in the 70's, it wasn't used much anymore.

3. Director George Lucas loved the logo and music so much that he insisted it be used for all the Star Wars films.

4. The Fox Fanfare is so integral to the music that John Williams composed the Main Title to the first Star Wars film in the same key of the Fanfare (B-flat major).

5. The Main Theme is composed of strong brass sections because Williams played brass when he was young.

6. John Williams thought of the Main Title Theme as "Luke's Theme" and wrote the song following Luke's heroic journey in the film. He said, "When I thought of a theme for Luke and his adventures, I composed a melody that reflected the brassy, bold, masculine, and noble qualities I saw in the character"

7. John Williams won the most awards for his career from the Star Wars musical theme including an Oscar and a Golden Globe Award for "Original Score", a BAFTA Award for "Best Film Music" and three Grammy awards for "Best Instrumental Composition", "Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special" and "Best Pop Instrumental Performance".

8. A disco version of the main theme was released in 1977 by Meco on their album Star Wars and other Galactic Funk. It version reached number 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and became the biggest-selling instrumental single in history and the first to be certified platinum.